Starz has released a new trailer for The Dresser, a movie starring big time talent such as two time Academy Award nominee Ian McKellen, Academy Award Winner Anthony Hopkins, and two time Academy Award nominee Emily Watson.

The not your typical TV Movie first aired on BBC Two in October of last year, and debuts on Starz in May. It’s an adaptation of the play of the same name by Ronald Harwood, and tells the story of a theatrical performance of Shakespeare’s King Lear by a troupe of traveling actors during World War II in 1941 England while bombs drop around them, the highly unpredictable lead actor, and his longtime dresser who keeps everything in order.

Continue below to watch the trailer.

The actors are about to take the stage but the lead, Sir (Anthony Hopkins), is nowhere to be seen; his dresser Norman (Ian McKellen), must scramble to keep the production alive. “The Dresser” is a wickedly funny and deeply moving story of friendshipy and loyalty.

The play has been adapted into a movie once before in 1983, starring Albert Finney and Tom Courtenay, who also starred in the stage production. It was nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Actor for Finney and Courtenay, Best Director for Peter Yates, and Best Adapted Screenplay.

Personally, I’ve never even heard of the play or the ’83 movie adaptation based on it. I had never even heard on this newest adaptation until I watched this trailer, believe it or not. But despite my being clueless to it, it certainly looks very much worth watching, especially considering the incredible cast. Also starring alongside McKellen, Hopkins, and Watson is Sarah Lancashire, Vanessa Kirby, Edward Fox, and Tom Brooke. It is directed by Richard Eyre (Notes on a Scandal).

The Dresser will premiere on Starz on May 30th.

Trailer

[Source: Starz]